Dr Henry Jekyll - Character Profile Mindmap

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  • Created by: willb14
  • Created on: 27-10-17 15:08
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  • Dr Henry Jekyll
    • Jekyll is a wealthy and respectable doctor who is "well known and highly considered"
      • He regularly holds dinner parties for his friends where he is sociable and shows "every mark of capacity and kindness"
        • He is a typical upper-class Victorian gentleman who conforms to the social expectations of the time
    • Jekyll always puts on a respectable front - he shows "a more than commonly grave countenance before the public
      • He is obsessed with being respected due to the guilt of his desires which he hides with an "almost morbid sense of shame"
        • One of these desires is the fascination for the theory that man has a good and evil side. He decides to experiment with this by designing a potion to separate the two
    • Jekyll's experiments in "transcendental medicine" proves he's an intelligent scientist. However his work isn't respected as it crosses the line from natural science to the supernatural
      • This challenged Christian beliefs of the time that a person should be free of sin as Hyde is created around evil and sin
      • Lost the respect of Dr Lanyon due to Jekyll's "unscientific balderdash"
    • The potion which Jekyll creates to transform into evil Mr Hyde, splits his personality ridding him of the "curse of mankind" that good and bad are bound together
      • This duality of human nature is motivated by his ambition and selfish desire to be "relieved of all that was unbearable" and his guilty conscience
      • He is so desperate that by drinking the potion he risks death. However, this wasn't a risk worth taking because it only releases his bad side leaving Jekyll even more divided
    • Determined
      • He is so determined that he risks losing everything in order for him to succeed - his friendships, reputation and wealth
      • "I do sincerely take a great, a very great interest in that young man."
        • The use of 'sincerely' shows that his determination and passion are real.
      • The repetition of 'great' emphasises how determined Jekyll is and illustrates how he feels about Mr Hyde.
      • Dr Jekyll is determined as he wants his experiment to succeed.
    • Respected
      • Dr Jekyll is respected due to his wealth, reputation as a charitable man and his discoveries in science.
      • As all of the men are judges of 'good wine', it indicates to the reader their wealth and respectability.
      • The doctor gave one of his pleasant dinners to some five or six old cronies, all intelligent reputable men, and all judges of good wine
        • This shows that he is well-liked and respected in the society of Victorian London.
    • Intelligent
      • Henry Jekyll, M.D., D.C.L., LL.D., F.RS., etc.
        • The titles that are attached to Dr Jekyll's name highlight his intelligence, as he has many degrees and qualifications
      • Dr Jekyll is intelligent due to his innovative experiments which are perceived by some others as worldly and un-godly, particularly by the conventional scientist, Dr Lanyon.
    • Erratic
      • Dr Jekyll becomes more erratic as the novel develops.
        • This is because he is trying to conceal Mr Hyde from everyone
      • However, Stevenson describes a sudden change in Dr Jekyll's behaviour.
        • ...before the smile was struck out of his face and succeeded by an expression of such abject terror and despair, as froze the very blood of the two gentleman below.
          • The word 'struck' shows that Hyde's appearance has changed Dr Jekyll's behaviour instantly.
          • This highlights the change in Dr Jekyll's behaviour, as before this quotation, Dr Jekyll was happily talking to Mr Utterson.

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